Innocently Overhearing
by Clear Eyed Dreamer
Summary: Bulma had never been ‘just another earthling’ to Vegeta, but after accidentally overhearing a conversation between her and Yamcha, he realises that she’s so much more then he had initially thought. [BV, oneshot]


Innocently Overhearing

Summary : Bulma had never been 'just another earthling' to Vegeta, but after accidentally overhearing a conversation between her and Yamcha, he realises that she's so much more then he had initially thought.

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Vegeta was irritated and in less than a pleasant mood, that's all there was to it. The gravity machine had been losing power gradually over the past month and finally decided to completely shut off just five minutes earlier. After much cursing and kicking the inanimate metal objects inside, he finally decided to go on a search for the woman who could fix his toy.

Vegeta had been hounding Bulma for the past month about the gravity machine, but every time he spoke to her she merely dismissed him and told him that she would get to it eventually. These obvious signs of disrespect did not sit well with the prince and he often times would stomp out in a rage and go train some more while muttering about how he should just blast the Earth and be done with it all.

The woman's father had been no help either. Early on in the gravity machines slow death, Vegeta had gone to speak to Dr. Briefs about fixing the machine. The old man had told him that he didn't quite understand Bulma's technology and how it was wired so he didn't want to mess around with it. She would have to do it. He should have blasted the old man right then and there for being so flippant about the whole thing.

So Vegeta was stuck, he had no choice but to go see Bulma about fixing the machine once again. After searching throughout the house for any sign of her, he finally heard her voice coming out of the open door of her personal workshop. He was about to enter when he heard the whiny voice of the scarred Earth boy and decided that he would wait. He was in no mood to deal with that man and he was sure that if he killed him, the woman would never fix the gravity machine for him. With a growl of frustration, he leaned back on the wall beside the door and closed his eyes, only to open them again in curiosity when he heard the Earth boy mention his name.

"Vegeta hasn't stepped out of line, has he?" Yamcha asked. Vegeta could tell by his voice that he was hesitant to ask the question.

Bulma had chuckled slightly and replied with, "only if you call verbally degrading me, stepping out of line."

"He shouldn't be doing that, and you know it," Yamcha stated, his voice a tad stronger.

"I don't really care, it's actually fun slinging insults back and forth with him," Bulma told him, her voice carefree.

"And what happens when his abuse raises from verbal to physical?" Yamcha asked.

Vegeta narrowed his eyes. How dare that insolent weakling suggest that he would attack and kill the woman, any woman for that matter, for no apparent reason. He was a warrior, he had honour, something that Earth boy knew nothing about. Vegeta wished that he could see what was happening, instead of only being able to listen.

"Yamcha, you're talking crazy, he's not going to attack me," Bulma stated, probably with a roll of her eyes.

"Oh yeah, what was I thinking? Of course he wouldn't attack you, he's only a cold blooded killer!" Yamcha exclaimed.

"He was a cold blooded killer. And he was only doing what he had to to survive," Bulma said, her voice a little colder then usual.

"Listen to yourself, Bulma, people don't change like that, he is what he is," Yamcha told her, a pleading tone seeping into his voice. "I can't believe that you'd endanger yourself and your family by letting that…that monster live here!"

Vegeta cringed slightly as he heard the sharp sound of flesh on flesh, indicating to his ears that Bulma had slapped the boy.

"You shut your mouth, Yamcha!" Bulma exclaimed, clearly angry, "you have no right to come in here and scold me for who I let live in my house. Vegeta is not a 'monster' and I never want to hear those words come out of your mouth again. He was just a poor little boy when was manipulated by that Frieza, he had no choice in the matter! It's no wonder I'm the only one he'll listen to, I'm the only one who doesn't look at him like he could snap at any moment!"

Vegeta cocked an eyebrow in interest at the woman's speech. He had assumed that she had hit Yamcha for suggesting that she had endangered her family, not for insulting him. It was true that he had always looked at the woman as a separate entity from the rest of the humans, but he would never have expected her to notice, let alone defend him to her worthless boyfriend. Maybe she was actually worth more then the rest of the human race.

"I can't believe you just hit me," Yamcha said, almost too quietly for Vegeta to hear.

"I think it's time for you to leave," Bulma told him, her voice hard and commanding.

Vegeta slunk back some away from the door and watched as the weakling walked out and thankfully, went the opposite way from where Vegeta was. He waited a few beats before entering Bulma's workshop. Her back was to the door and he walked over to where she was standing in front of her work table. He leaned against it and crossed his arms, knowing the entire time she was giving him an irritated stare.

"I'm a little busy, if you don't mind," she told him grumpily.

Vegeta shook his head and glanced down at the little piece of machinery she had returned to working on. "Gravity machine is broken," he told her.

"It's always broken," Bulma replied, "that's what you do. I swear, it's all just a game to you, 'let's break the gravity machine so that gorgeous aqua haired woman will have to drop everything she's doing and fix it'." She said with a roll of her eyes. She glanced over at Vegeta and felt her mouth go dry. He was staring at her in such an odd way, not like he ever had before, as if he was scrutinizing every inch and detail of her face. She giggled nervously, "what?"

Vegeta smirked slowly and shook his head, "nothing." She really was quite attractive and had a rare high intelligence for a human which only helped her to seem all the more attractive to him. Was it possible that he had unintentionally felt an attraction for her all along? That wasn't completely a negative thing, he decided. He started walking back towards the door, "now get to work, my gravity machine isn't going to fix itself!" he said before disappearing through it.

Bulma smiled as she watched him leave, he was definitely something else, but it was an attractive something else.


End file.
